NBA fans are quick to forget players that may have been stars of certain teams due to the lack of success those teams had at that time. That doesn’t mean the player that led the squad was inherently bad, just that they weren’t good enough to be considered an icon of the squad.
LaMarcus Aldridge finds himself saddled with this reputation, as he was the star of the San Antonio Spurs after their nearly-20 years of dominance in the NBA ended. A Fan thanked Aldridge for his underappreciated service to the team, something Aldridge responded to.
“I appreciate that.”
I appreciate that https://t.co/f3SQeRL1Dh
— LaMarcus Aldridge (@aldridge_12) July 15, 2023
Aldridge’s reaction came to a thread on Twitter where fans said that Victor Wembanyama is not just comparable to Tim Duncan and David Robinson, but he should also study from Aldridge’s incredible scoring arsenal from the mid-range and in the post.
Heard a lot about Timmy and Admiral as prospective mentors for Wembanyama, but LaMarcus Aldridge belongs in the convo.
Imagine if Wemby developed 60% of LMA’s post game? That’s GGs for the league pic.twitter.com/tONQN8xg2e
— Dylan Hunter Carter (@DylanHCarter) July 15, 2023
Aldridge averaged 19.5 points and 8.0 rebounds in six seasons with the Spurs. He was brought in to be the co-star to Kawhi Leonard as the team transitioned out of the Tim Duncan era. Unfortunately, Kawhi’s injuries and abrupt departure never allowed the team to find success. Aldridge was paired up with DeMar DeRozan as they became the first iteration of the Spurs to not make the playoffs under Gregg Popovich.
The seven-time All-Star left the franchise in 2021, joining the Brooklyn Nets before retiring early due to a heart condition.
Victor Wembanyama Has Plenty Of Bigs To Learn From
Wembanyama will naturally try and model his game after the likes of Duncan and Robinson first, hoping to be a scoring title threat like Robinson was and a perennial Defensive Player of the Year candidate like Duncan was. Aldridge didn’t have Duncan’s defensive chops, but his ability to score from the mid-range will be a crucial addition to Wemby’s arsenal, as teams will look to restrict him in the paint.
As he gradually acclimates himself to the physical post-defense of the NBA, having mid-range moves in his arsenal could further unlock the incredible potential everyone has recognized he has. He’s spending the rest of the summer as far away from media as possible, so hopefully, he comes back into the season motivated to dominate.
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